
Why does it matter?
Medication adherence and its impact:
30-50% of medications are not taken at all, or not as instructed
Medication adherence is associated with
• 10% of hospitalizations**
• 26% of ALL avoidable readmissions**
• Poor medication compliance is related to 125,000 deaths/year ***
• Cost of non-adherence is $290 billion/year ****
• 72% of post-discharge adverse events
** Quick Guide to Health Literacy. https://health.gov/communication/literacy/quickguide/Quickguide.pdf
*** Viswanathan M, Golin CE, Jones CD, Ashok M, Blalock SJ, Wines RC, Coker-Schwimmer EJ, Rosen DL, Sista P, Lohr KN. Interventions to improve adherence to self-administered
medications for chronic diseases in the United States: a systematic review. Ann Intern Med. 2012 Dec 4;157(11):785–95.
**** NEHI Research Brief-August 2009. Thinking Outside The Pillbox: A System-wide Approach to Improving Patient Adherence for Chronic Disease.” NEHI, 2009